Chicago Blackhawks

Corey Crawford, Corey Crawford, Corey Crawford, that is all you need to know about the first two periods of last nights game. For those that complain the Crawford never has any goalie wins well here is the first of the season. For 40 minutes no one will argue he was the best player on the ice for the Hawks.
The ice was definitely tilted to the Hawks zone and as the Stars came out flying. It appeared they did not get the memo that the playoffs were over and the regular season had started or maybe they have something to prove.
The Hawks left Dallas as coach Quenneville said after having committed robbery. There is no way the Hawks should have won that game but then again isn’t that ...

We all knew it was coming, but that doesn’t make the parting any easier. The Hawks finally got under the salary cap ceiling by dealing defenseman Nick Leddy and goaltender Kent Simpson to the New York Islanders in exchange for prospects TJ Brennan, Ville Pokka, and the rights to goalie Anders Nilsson. The trade helped out both teams, as it successfully gave the Hawks some cap room while helping New York upgrade their blue line, but who really won this deal?

Alright it is only preseason but it’s good to see the Hawks back on the ice where they belong. Even though pre-season games are just that there are several things that can be noted particularly since this is an audition for many of the younger players.

The Lines for the most part were Sharp-Toews-Hossa; Saad-Richards-Kane; Carey-Rasmussen-Morin & Mashinter-Danault-Bass. The Defensive pairing were Keith-Seabrook; Hjalmarsson-Dahlbeck & Rozsival-Cumisky.

Of the young forwards, Phillip Danault really stood out. He is very defensively responsible and was a faceoff monster at 67% which tied with the Captain for the highest percentage. Not too shabby. He also had two b...

The theme this summer in the NHL world was advanced stats, as ‘basement bloggers’ rose up and started to take their place in the big leagues. Advocates for analytics including Darryl Metcalf (founder of ExtraSkater.com) Kyle Dubas, and Tyler Dellow, among others, have been snapped up by NHL teams as newly formed or expanded analytic departments become more valuable to teams. As the ‘summer of analytics’ continues, it's leaving in its wake some confused and dubious fans asking themselves if corsi or fenwick, whatever they are, are actually that important. They are, but it can ...

When we last left the hockey club that resides on Madison they were skating off the ice to an eerily quieted United Center. Their season was abruptly and rudely ended by a single bounce of the puck off of one of their own defenseman, but that is hockey.

There is no feeling sorry or crying over missed chances rather there is the opportunity to make more chances and as Bauer commercials so accurately states “Own the Moment” or moments throughout the hockey season. The season begins with some faces gone and some new faces both on the ice and behind the bench. Let’s review the off season changes.

Plenty of people thought that, like last year, the Chicago Blackhawks would push past the LA Kings in the Western Conference Finals. But 2014’s battle between the two teams would be different, from beginning to end; the Kings would manage to put the Blackhawks against the wall with a 3-1 series lead, only to see the Hawks come back and force a Game 7.

And they’d play hard. Both of these teams gave 100% during the 65:47 minutes they played, all the way into overtime, where Alec Martinez would put an end to the Blackhawks&r...

It’s all come down to a one-game, winner-takes-all epic showdown at the Madhouse on Sunday night, and the hype couldn’t be higher for the Blackahwks/Kings showdown for Game 7. The Hawks took a nerve-wracking Game 6 with a score of 4-3, sending the series back to the United Center, where the winner of Game 7 will move on to the Stanley cup final for the second time in the last three years to face the New York Rangers. This will be the King’s third Game 7 of the playoffs, after taking both the San Jose Sharks and the Anaheim Ducks to seven games in their previous two playoff series.

In a matchup that felt more like a Game 7 than a Game 5, the Hawks and Kings put on a show in a 5-4 double OT win for the Blackhawks. Corey Crawford and Jonathan Quick both made 40 saves, and it was Michal Handzus who would put it away for the Hawks 2:04 into the second overtime period.

The Hawks jumped out to an early lead, capitalizing on a power play just 1:13 into the first that had Drew Doughty in the box for tripping Jonathan Toews. Brent Seabrook let los...

Tonight, the Kings have their first chance to win the series against the Blackhawks, and to earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Final. Game 5 will be played in Chicago, after 4 games that saw the Kings take a 3-1 series lead.

The Blackhawks, in the past 3 games, have been mostly outplayed and outshot, despite individual efforts across the board to keep the team in the games. But the Kings have seemed stronger and simply playing better, taking less penalties, more disciplined than the Blackhawks.

After a disappointing Game 3, the Hawks will look to even up the series Monday night against the Los Angeles Kings in enemy territory. The Kings have 2-1 lead of the series, and could go back to Chicago with a commanding 3-1 lead and a chance to close out the Hawks.

The Hawks have been in this situation before- in series against both Boston and Detroit last year, the Hawks found themselves behind and on the road. But this game is imperative for the Hawks ...